JP3836609B2 - Liquid suction device - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a liquid suction device capable of identifying a container using a liquid suction tube for sucking a liquid, and can be suitably used in the field of collecting a liquid sample in a sample analyzer or the like.
[0002]
[Prior art]
When a liquid sample is sucked from a sealed container whose container opening is sealed by a stopper such as a rubber cap, a needle-like suction tube whose tip is cut obliquely is used.
[0003]
In order to prevent rubber debris from being clogged in the suction pipe when the cap is pierced, there has been known (a) a suction pipe provided with a suction opening as described in JP-A-9-304400.
[0004]
On the other hand, in order to operate without problems for containers with caps (closed containers) and containers without caps (open containers), (b) as described in Japanese Patent No. 2511549, One having a probe and a needle for an airtight container is known. The open container and the sealed container are identified by reading an identification label or card provided outside the container with a detector.
[0005]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
In the prior art (b), a label or card and a detector for reading them are required for container identification. For this reason, if the label and the card are not provided correctly, the container cannot be identified correctly. Furthermore, since two types of suction parts are prepared according to the type of container, the configuration is also increased in size and complexity.
[0006]
An object of the present invention is to provide a container identification device that can correctly identify a container with a simple configuration.
[0007]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In the liquid suction device of the present invention, a container is identified using a liquid suction tube for sucking a liquid. To identify a container is to determine whether or not the target container is a sealed container with a plug, but the presence / absence of a sealed container, the presence / absence of a container plug, the type of container (with a plug) Closed container or open container without stopper).
[0008]
The liquid suction device of the present invention is a liquid suction device that sucks liquid from a container disposed at a predetermined position, and a liquid suction tube that has a sharp tip and can suck the liquid, and the liquid suction tube moves in the vertical direction A drive mechanism for detecting the external force applied to the liquid suction pipe, and a control means for controlling the means. The drive mechanism includes two types of strength sources, When the drive mechanism is driven and the liquid suction tube is moved toward the container, the control means determines that the external force detection means does not detect an external force and that the external force is detected have judged container identification functions as a sealed container, the liquid suction tube is lowered with a small force when not sealed container, so that the control to lower the liquid suction tube with a strong force in the case of the sealed container To do And it features.
[0009]
A container containing a liquid to be collected (for example, a sample liquid to be inspected) is disposed at a predetermined position. The drive mechanism operates and the liquid suction tube moves toward the container. When the container is not a closed container or an open container, the liquid suction tube does not contact the stopper because there is no stopper. The same applies when there is no container itself. Therefore, no external force acts on the liquid suction pipe.
[0010]
When the container is a hermetically sealed container, the liquid suction pipe comes into contact with the stopper because there is a stopper. Therefore, an external force acts on the liquid suction tube. Container distinction can be performed by this difference.
[0011]
As described above, in the present invention, since the presence or absence of the plug is directly detected using the liquid suction tube, a determination error related to container identification is unlikely to occur. In addition, there are few configurations to be newly added, and the entire apparatus is not complicated or enlarged.
[0012]
The obtained determination result is suitably used for operating the liquid suction tube with specifications suitable for each container . Drive kinematic mechanism comprises a strength two driving sources, a liquid suction tube is lowered by a weak force in the case of an open container, controls to lower the liquid suction tube with a strong force in the case of a closed container that Is possible. If there is no container, the liquid suction tube may not be lowered.
[0013]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
The liquid suction tube used is preferably made of metal in terms of strength and liquid level detection, and the outer wall of the stainless steel pipe is coated with a hard coating such as chromium nitride (CrN) in terms of corrosion resistance and wear resistance. It is preferable that it is made. From the viewpoint of preventing clogging, it is preferable that an acute edge is not generated at the end of the inner wall of the tube at the oblique cut surface at the tip of the tube.
[0014]
Although it does not specifically limit as a liquid attracted | sucked with a liquid suction tube, The blood samples, such as plasma which should be analyzed with an analyzer, are the examples. It is preferable from the viewpoint of automation of analysis processing that the containers containing the liquid to be collected (for example, sample liquid to be inspected) in the liquid suction device are sequentially arranged at predetermined positions by the transfer means. Specifically, a sample rack on which a plurality of containers are mounted or placed can be transferred by a sampler, and the containers can be sequentially arranged below the suction tube.
[0015]
The external force detection means preferably includes a sensor that detects that an object has collided with the tip of the liquid suction tube. This type of sensor is usually referred to as a crash sensor and is provided to detect when a liquid suction pipe collides with an object. As soon as the liquid suction pipe collides with an object, the liquid suction pipe is stopped and retracted, thereby avoiding damage to the liquid suction pipe. In the present invention, container identification can be performed by using this type of crash sensor provided in the liquid suction device.
[0016]
【Example】
FIG. 1 shows a schematic configuration of an example of the liquid suction device of the present invention. FIG. 2 shows a specific configuration of an example of the liquid suction device of the present invention. This liquid suction device is built in the blood coagulation measuring device in this embodiment. FIG. 2 is a view as seen from the left side of the blood coagulation measuring apparatus, in which the right side is the front of the apparatus and the left side is the inside of the apparatus. A sample rack 66 holding a plurality of sample containers 68 arranged in a line is transferred by the sampler one container at a time from the back of the drawing to the front in the drawing.
[0017]
As shown in FIG. 1, the liquid suction device includes a first unit 10 and a second unit 11. The first unit 10 includes a first holding unit 30 that holds a pipette 12 that is a liquid suction tube, and a drive source 43 that moves the first holding unit 30 up and down. The second unit 11 includes a second holding unit 74 that engages with the first holding unit 30 and a drive source 86 for moving the second holding unit 74 up and down. The first unit 10 can move horizontally. An alternate long and two short dashes line indicates a state in which the first unit 10 is positioned at the forefront, the first holding unit 30 is close to the second holding unit 74, and both can be engaged. The solid line indicates a state in which the first unit 10 is located rearward and the first holding unit 30 is separated from the second holding unit 74 and cannot be engaged with each other.
[0018]
The pipette 12 has an internal passage 14 (see FIG. 4), and is a stainless steel cylindrical tube having an outer diameter of 2.0 mm, an inner diameter of 1.3 mm, and a total length of about 130 mm. An electric wire 34 is connected to the upper end of the pipette 12. The electric wire 34 is connected to the liquid level detection circuit 35 and detects the liquid level based on a change in capacitance when the pipette tip contacts the liquid level. A tube 36 is connected to the upper end of the pipette 12, and the tube 36 is connected to a liquid metering device 37 such as a syringe pump. In this embodiment, the first unit is moved in the horizontal direction by drive sources 94 and 96.
[0019]
3 and 4 are a partially enlarged view and a partially enlarged sectional view of the tip portion of the pipette. The pipette 12 is narrowed to an outer diameter of 1.2 mm and an inner diameter of 0.5 mm in the vicinity of the lower end, and is sharply cut obliquely with respect to the tube axis as shown in the figure. The internal passage 14 opens into the oblique cut surface 16. If it is simply cut obliquely, an acute edge is generated at the inner wall end 21 of the oblique cut surface 16 (an acute edge is generated in the upper half circumference 20 and an obtuse edge is generated in the lower half circumference 22).
[0020]
FIG. 5 shows a state where the conventional pipette 13 is pierced with a rubber cap. Since there is an acute edge at the end of the inner wall, the rubber cap 24 is cut by the acute edge 23 when the rubber cap is stabbed, and a part (rubber residue) of the cut rubber cap enters the opening, so that clogging occurs immediately. .
[0021]
Therefore, a chamfering process was performed on the upper half circumferential portion 20 to remove an acute edge. As a result, it was confirmed that sharp edges could be eliminated on the entire circumference of the inner wall end, and clogging did not occur even in a continuous test of at least 30,000 times. The pipette 12 is coated with chromium nitride (CrN) on the outer wall in the region from the lower end to about 80 mm in order to enhance wear resistance.
[0022]
FIG. 2 is a partially cutaway side view of an embodiment of the liquid suction device. Reference numeral 44 denotes a first chassis of the first unit 10. 40 and 41 are pulleys, and 42 is a belt stretched around the pulleys 40 and 41. One pulley 41 is directly connected to a shaft of a motor 43 (stepping motor in this embodiment) which is a first drive source. If a member is attached to a part of the belt 42, the member can be moved up and down by the rotation of the first motor 43.
[0023]
The first unit 10 is provided with external force detecting means 54 for detecting when an upward external force is applied to the pipette 12. The member 50 attached to the belt 42 via the member 48 is rotatably supported by the second chassis 38. The second chassis 38 is guided by guide shafts 46 and 47 attached to the first chassis 44 so that it can only move up and down. A first holding unit holding the pipette 12 is attached to the second chassis 38. An urging means 52 such as a compression coil spring is disposed between the second chassis 38 and the member 50.
[0024]
When no external force is applied to the pipette 12, the member 50 is urged clockwise in the drawing with the member 54 provided on the second chassis 38 as a fulcrum, and is brought into contact with a locking portion 56 provided on the second chassis. ing. Therefore, the first holding unit 30, the second chassis 38, and the member 50 are integrally moved up and down by the rotation of the first motor 43.
[0025]
If an object comes into contact with the pipette 12 while the pipette is lowered and an upward external force is applied, the member 48 side of the member 50 moves downward, but the fulcrum 54 side of the second chassis 38 stops. The member 50 rotates relatively counterclockwise as shown by a two-dot chain line against the compression force. This slight fluctuation is detected by a sensor 53 such as a micro switch. The sensor 53 is connected to the external force detection circuit 55 by an electric wire, and external force detection is performed.
[0026]
Reference numeral 58 denotes a guide member that functions as guide means for a pipette that has a through hole and moves up and down. The guide member 58 is attached to the first chassis 44. In this embodiment, since the pipette 12 has a length of 100 mm or more, it is provided so as not to cause horizontal blurring during movement.
[0027]
A cleaning unit 60 includes a through-hole 63 (see FIG. 1) and supplies the cleaning liquid to the through-hole 63 from the port 62 and discharges the waste liquid from the port 64 to clean the wall of the pipette 12. The cleaning unit 60 is moved up and down by a drive source 72 such as an air cylinder via a member 70. Reference numeral 71 denotes a guide rail that is provided in the vertical direction and guides the member 70.
[0028]
The second unit will be described. Reference numeral 74 denotes a second holding portion that can be engaged with the first holding portion 30. In the present embodiment, both the recesses 30 and 74 are connected by fitting the recesses and the projections. The first holding part 30 is provided with a convex part 32. The second holding part 74 is provided with a concave part 76 in which the convex part 32 is fitted with a gap. The convex portion 32 has a vertical width of about 6 mm, and the concave portion has a vertical width of 14 mm. The first holding portion can move without interference of the second holding portion, that is, has a non-interference range of 8 mm. Yes.
[0029]
A drive shaft 80 is rotatably supported by bearings 84 and 85 and has a spiral groove, and 82 is a moving member that is screwed into the drive shaft 80 and moves up and down as the drive shaft 80 rotates. A pulley 89 is attached to one end of the drive shaft 80, and the rotation of the second motor (stepping motor) 86 is transmitted to the drive shaft 80 via the pulley 88 and the belt 90. The second holding portion 74 is attached to the moving element 82 via a member 78 and is guided by the guide rail 71 to move up and down.
[0030]
When the first holding unit 30 and the second holding unit 74 are in the engaged state, if the power supply to the first motor 43 is removed and the second motor 86 is rotated, the second holding unit 74 becomes the first holding unit. The holding portion 30 can be pressed and moved. At this time, the first motor 43 is forcibly rotated by an external force.
[0031]
In the present embodiment, the first unit 10 is configured to horizontally move in the left-right direction on the paper surface by a motor 94. Further, the motor 96 is configured to move horizontally in the front and back direction of the paper. When the first unit 10 is on the front side (right side) of the apparatus, the first holding unit 30 and the second holding unit 74 are engaged with each other. When the first unit 10 moves rearward (left side), the engagement between both is released, and the pipette 12 moves up and down exclusively by the rotation of the first motor 43.
[0032]
In this embodiment, a sample container containing plasma as a sample solution is mounted on a sample rack 66 to which, for example, ten containers can be mounted by a sampler and transported. FIG. 6 shows the sample rack 66 as viewed from the front side of the blood coagulation measuring apparatus. The sample rack 66 is intermittently moved one sample container at a time from the right to the left, and sequentially arranged below the pipette. The sample containers used in this embodiment are roughly classified into three types. The first type is a sealed container a, b, c, d, e, f mounted on the bottom wall of the sample rack 66 (the container bottom is in contact with the sample rack bottom wall). Each container has a different cap. The second type is an open container g placed on the sample rack bottom wall (the container bottom is in contact with the sample rack bottom wall). The third type is an open container h, i, j placed above the bottom wall of the sample rack (each container is provided with a flange, abutting h, j on the top wall of the sample rack, or abutting i on the top of the open container for placement. The bottom of any open container is not in contact with the bottom wall of the sample rack).
[0033]
In this embodiment, since the tapered portion 61 is provided on the lower surface of the through-hole 63 of the cleaning unit 60, the container is not displaced even if it is a unique container such as f (a vacuum blood collection tube made by MONSTETTE manufactured by SARSTTED). Can be held.
[0034]
The control unit 92 receives a signal from the sensor and drives each motor according to the program. The operation of the liquid suction device will be described.
[0035]
<Step 1: Detection of presence / absence of container cap>
In the state in which the first unit 10 is positioned at the forefront, the first motor 43 and the second motor 86 are rotated so that the first holding unit 30 and the second holding unit 74 are lowered, thereby the engagement non-interference state. While maintaining the above, the pipette 12 passes through the cleaning unit 60 from the initial position (uppermost point) and is lowered by a predetermined distance. Meanwhile, the control unit 92 monitors a signal from the external force detection circuit 55. If it is detected that an external force is applied to the pipette 12, it is determined that the container is a sealed container with a cap, and the first motor 43 is stopped. If an external force does not act even when the pipette 12 is lowered by a predetermined distance, it is determined that the container is an open container without a cap.
[0036]
<Step 2-1: Pipette lowering (piercing) in the case of a sealed container>
The stopped first motor 43 is rotated in the slightly opposite direction to release the tip of the pipette 12 from the cap. Then, the drive source 72 is driven to lower the cleaning unit, and the cap 69 of the container 68 is pressed and held on the lower surface of the cleaning unit 60. The power supply to the first motor 43 is stopped, and the second motor 86 is rotated. The second holding portion 74 pushes down the first holding portion 30 to pierce the pipette 12 into the cap 69 of the container 68 (the pipette 12 is lowered only by the force of the second motor 86). Then, the second motor 86 is stopped and the pipette 12 is also stopped by any information of the liquid level detection information from the liquid level detection circuit 35 and the position information that the preset bottom point has been reached.
[0037]
<Step 2-2: Lowering of pipette in case of open container>
The first motor 43 and the second motor 86 are continuously rotated to lower the first holding unit 30 without coming into contact with the second holding unit 74 (the pipette 12 is connected to the first motor 43). Descend by force). Then, the first motor 43 is determined by any one of the liquid level detection information from the liquid level detection circuit 35, the external force detection information from the external force detection circuit 55, and the position information that the preset lowest point has been reached. The pipette 12 is also stopped.
[0038]
<Step 3: Sample suction>
The pipette 12 is lowered by a predetermined distance in accordance with the amount of suction, and the liquid metering device 37 is operated to suck a predetermined amount of plasma from the opening 18 at the tip of the pipette 12 (from 5 μl to 500 μl). If the pipette 12 stops descending when the lowest point is reached in step 2-1, or if the pipette 12 stops descending due to external force detection or reaching the lowest point in step 2-2, there is no plasma to be aspirated. Therefore, the liquid is not sucked and an error message indicating no sample liquid is output.
[0039]
<Step 4-1: Ascending pipette (withdrawal) in closed container>
The second motor 86 is reversely rotated while power supply to the first motor 43 is stopped. The second holding portion 74 pushes up the first holding portion 30 to pull out the pipette 12 from the cap 69 of the container 68 (the pipette 12 is lifted exclusively by the force of the second motor 86). At the same time, the cleaning liquid is supplied to the cleaning unit 60, the waste liquid is discharged, and the outer wall of the pipette 12 is cleaned. When the drawing is completed, the cleaning unit 60 is raised and the holding of the container 68 is released. Pipette 12 returns to the initial position.
[0040]
<Step 4-2: Raising the pipette in the case of an open container>
The first motor 43 and the second motor 86 are rotated in the reverse direction to raise the first holding unit 30 without contacting the second holding unit 74 (the pipette 12 has the force of the first motor 43 exclusively). To rise). At the same time, the cleaning liquid is supplied to the cleaning unit 60, the waste liquid is discharged, and the outer wall of the pipette 12 is cleaned. Pipette 12 returns to the initial position.
[0041]
<Step 5: Backward movement of pipette>
The motor 94 is rotated to move the first unit 10 backward. As a result, the first holding portion is completely released from the engagement from the second holding portion. Further, if necessary, the motor 96 may be rotated to move the first unit laterally.
[0042]
<Step 6: Lowering the pipette>
Since the first holding unit 30 is disengaged from the second holding unit 74, only the first motor 43 is rotated to lower the pipette 12 by a predetermined amount.
[0043]
<Step 7: Sample liquid discharge>
The liquid metering device 37 is operated to discharge a predetermined amount of plasma from the opening 18 at the tip of the pipette 12 into a reaction container (not shown).
[0044]
<Step 8: Raising the pipette>
The first motor 43 is reversely rotated to raise the pipette 12. Then, the inner and outer walls of the pipette 12 are washed. For example, the pipette 12 is moved to a cleaning container (not shown) by the motor 94 or the motor 96 and cleaned. Alternatively, the cleaning liquid may be supplied to the internal passage 14 of the pipette 12, the cleaning liquid may be supplied to the cleaning unit 60, and the waste liquid may be discharged from the cleaning unit 60 to clean the inner and outer walls of the pipette 12.
[0045]
<Step 9: Moving the pipette forward>
The motor 94 is reversely rotated to move the first unit 10 forward. Pipette 12 returns to the initial position. The first holding part can be engaged with the second holding part.
<Step 10: Transfer of sample rack>
The sampler is driven and the sample rack 68 is moved by one container and stopped. And the said process is performed in order.
[0046]
【The invention's effect】
The liquid suction device of the present invention performs container identification based on whether or not an external force acts on the liquid suction pipe when the liquid suction pipe for sucking the liquid is lowered. That is, since the presence or absence of the plug is directly detected and determined, a determination error is unlikely to occur. In addition, since the configuration of the liquid suction tube, the external force detection means, and the like provided in the analyzer is used, the apparatus does not become complicated and large.
[0047]
Further, the liquid suction tube can be operated with specifications suitable for each situation based on the determination result.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a liquid suction device of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a partially cutaway side view of the liquid suction device of the present invention.
FIG. 3 is a side view of a tip portion of a liquid suction tube.
FIG. 4 is a side sectional view of a tip portion of a liquid suction tube.
FIG. 5 is a side view of a conventional liquid suction tube when a rubber cap is pierced.
FIG. 6 is a front view of a sample rack on which various sample containers are mounted.
[Explanation of symbols]
10 First unit 11 Second unit 12 Liquid suction pipe (pipette)
16 Diagonal cut surface 20 Pipe inner wall end 30 First holding portion 35 Liquid level detection means 37 Liquid metering device 43 First drive source (motor)
54 External force detection means 60 Cleaning unit 68 Sample container 74 Second holding unit 86 Second drive source (motor)
92 Control unit

Claims (1)

In a liquid suction device that sucks liquid from a container disposed at a predetermined position,
A liquid suction tube whose tip is sharply formed and capable of sucking liquid;
A drive mechanism for moving the liquid suction pipe in the vertical direction;
An external force detection means for detecting that an upward external force is applied to the liquid suction pipe;
Control means for controlling these means, and
The drive mechanism has two types of driving sources, strong and weak.
When the drive mechanism is driven and the liquid suction tube is moved toward the container, the control means determines that the external force detection means does not detect an external force and that the external force is detected it has a function of determining that the closed container, the liquid suction tube is lowered with a small force when not sealed container, to so that the control to lower the liquid suction tube with a strong force in the case of the sealed container A liquid suction device characterized by the above .

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